Albert Adomah – Key Figure

Adomah or Adama? How many times has that phrase appeared in your news feeds on social media? It was also the topic of debate on Transfer Deadline Day back in August last year when we saw Albert Adomah arrive at Villa Park after seeing the highly disappointing Adama Traore move in the opposite direction to Middlesbrough.

The reactions of the two sets of supporters couldn’t have been more different. Polar opposites when it came to the general words being used to describe each player. The Boro faithful had just seen themselves earn promotion back to the Premier League under the leadership of Aitor Karanka for the first time since relegation back in 2009. Albert Adomah had been an important player chipping in with goals and assists to help the team and when it was confirmed that he would be joining Villa, he was given some glowing references from both the fans and players who had been alongside him.

We only have to fast forward to recent weeks and see the ovation Adomah received against Middlesbrough at Villa Park to see his standing with them still.

As for Adama Traore, there is no doubt the lad has talents and Barcelona obviously saw something in him to hold him in such high regard with muted ‘buy-back’ clauses etc. However, apart from the odd flash of pace and skill, he turned out to be a poor (and expensive) investment to add into arguably our worst ever team of players.

Albert Adomah has worked hard to gain a place in the higher echelons of the Football League. He first caught the eye of Barnet in 2008 who at the time were plying their trade in League Two. He was signed from Isthmian League Premier Division club Harrow Borough. It was far from a glamorous story and the tricky winger was also studying for a Level 2 in Decorating and Painting at college.

As random a story as this may seem, this is one of the key reasons he is quickly becoming a firm favourite at Villa Park and amongst the players at Bodymoor Heath.

After moving up through moves to Bristol City and Middlesbrough he came to Aston Villa at their lowest point and will be seen as a key player to help them climb back to where many feel they should be.

The attitude of the Ghanaian has been superb, even during a spell away from the first team. Whether it be in training, on the pitch or at events to support the local community the one endearing image of Adomah is his broad smile. Something we sometimes forget about amidst the results and recent poor years.

When given the freedom to express himself and play football, he boasts trickery and the desire to run at defenders. I can’t help but think of Paulo Wanchope at times, a Derby County cult hero who had a very unpredictable style of play and the fans would often say even he didn’t know what he was doing with the ball as he rounded players and scored.

Last season Adomah came second only to Conor Hourihane in terms of assists within the Championship. Also take out the fact that Hourihane picked up the majority of his assists at Barnsley, it’s safe to say he was easily our most productive midfielder last year.

Primarily a winger, he also added to the front line last year stepping in when forwards were missing to score important goals.

Since his reintroduction against Barnsley a few weeks ago, the desire and effort has been clear to see and he has been instrumental in picking up the full nine points in our last three outings. A purple patch has seen him score four in his last three games and his link up play with Jonathan Kodjia and Keinan Davis is only helping the team further.

It’s great to see Bruce allowing Adomah to build upon his recent return and I can see him going on to double figures for goals and assists should he be a consistent starter. A very rare accomplishment for a Villa player in years gone by.

We are getting used to seeing his dance moves grace the turf with the odd headstand thrown in for good measure.

Long may it continue and wouldn’t it be great to see more footballers play with the attitude and desire of our own Albert Adomah.